Stay away from WAV, 1Link - pumps start to fail after 1 year.

[Highgrade]

1st WAV died at 6am. I woke up at 7am and the whole tank was dark. What if it died at 1am and the tank was out of oxgen and flow for 6 hrs? (Even my power outage alert sensor would not save it because the wall outlet has power and I don't wake up at 1am to check my text messages.)
The 2 WAV's died were working and making no noise until they died suddenly. So, my bad not maintaining / cleaning it often enough?
Ok, they can't trust everyone's good word. Then at least offer advanced replacement and if they find my WAV pump modified or abused by me, they have my credit card to charge (as long as they can prove that is my fault). What do they have to lose? These things are all couple hundred dollars a piece and the whole apex setup is over $1k easily. THEY ARE NOT CHEAP. With that much profit margin, still can't provide some decent customer service? We are keeping fish here and the apex equipment is vital to it and it is usually the most expensive part of the tank. We can't wait for 5-7 days for the APEX base unit or the EB832 to come back.

Highgrade, I found your logic not acceptable.

Derek,
I was just providing my experience with Neptune and their products. In no way or form did I say you neglected your equipment. Besides I find your logic unacceptable. In any given case I highly doubt if your WAV pumps failed at 1am would you have an issue with your tank. The return pump should suffice until alternative flow was restored.

The fact of the matter is hardware fails. Its not Neptune responsibility to maintain your tank or the hardware that goes into it. Should they back their product and honor a valid warranty? Most definitely. Say they take your CC info to send you a advanced replacement. You send in your faulty WAV. They find there is nothing wrong with the WAV and there is some other underlying issue at hand. Throwing replacement parts at a problem may not fix the problem permanently say if you have a FW, EB832 or controller problem. Is Neptune supposed to eat the cost of shipping out products to everyone based on people claiming a product is faulty without inspecting or troubleshooting further? What about restocking fees. Would you be upset and write another post down the road if they wanted the advanced pump back then charged you a restocking fee given they found no issue with your pump? Along with possibly charge you shipping to get your old pump back. What about the next guy that gets that refurbished pump you had as a temporary advanced replacement? Will they be happy with the condition of the unit? Obviously you don't understand how businesses work. Even if the cost of their products is high. They still have to turn a profit. If you don't like their price point don't buy their products.

Anyhow I hope you get your issue with your WAVs resolved.

-HG

 

[DerekC]

Both my 2 WAVs connected directly to my EB832. First one shorted out the whole EB832, so no power to any outlets or the base unit (brain.) At first, I thought EB832 died and they suggested me to drive there 1 hrs, wait 2 hrs, and drive back 1 hr, while my tank is run by an air stone. Eventually I figured it was the WAV shorting it.
2nd one shorted out the other WAV, the DOS, and 2 24VDC devices (siren and solenoid). Now I am sending this 2nd WAV to Neptune for "further diagnostics."

YES, WAV PUMPS CAN SHORT OUT (TEMPORARILY IN MY 2 CASES ) OTHER THINGS. WHO KNOWS IF THEY COULD DO THAT PERMANENTLY.

 

[Highgrade]

Sorry, are you saying that the WAV stopped working and caused other equipment on your tank to also stop working? When one of mine internally shorted out, it took down the other WAV that was attached to the shared 1link; but as soon as the shorted pump was unplugged from the box, the other one resumed operation. Would be curious to know how yours were connected - 1link versus EB832?

I originally experienced this same issue both times with my WAV pumps using the 1 link. Each time one of my WAV pumps failed it cancelled out the other pump. Thus my comments on troubleshooting further with Neptune to get to the root of the issue.

 

[DerekC]

Highgrade, again, my first WAV shorted out and shut down everyone on my EB832. That means no return pump no heater etc.

 

[Highgrade]

Highgrade, again, my first WAV shorted out and shut down everyone on my EB832. That means no return pump no heater etc.

Understood. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

 

[ca1ore]

The reason I asked whether your WAV was connected to 1Link or EB832 was to confirm a 'hypothesis'. Namely that when a WAV fails it appears to temporarily shut down other devices connected to the same 'source'. So if connected to 1Link a shorted pump shuts down the others connected to that 1Link; if connected to EB832 a shorted pump shuts down all devices connected to that EB832. I'd like to know from Neptune of that is in fact the case, because if so, it makes connecting WAV pumps to EB832 problematic. I suspect 1Link is thus the preferred mode of connection.

 

[acjobim]

I had my Right WAV fail during my vacation last weekend. Hit a stall and never came out of it. My backup WAV (purchased in a two pack with the Right WAV) failed this morning. They are both over 2 years old. Neptune will look at them (They looked at my system and sent me an RMA without the pumps plugged in), but I don't see much coming out of it. My Left WAV (which is newer than both) is still running. The biggest issue for me is how every component on the 1Link stops working when the pump fails. This is a problem that needs to be resolved. It has class action written all over it. When I got home from vacation my sump was extremely low. Now I know why, the ATO failed, the PMUP was on the same 1Link as the failed WAV. The DOS on the same 1Link failed also. This is a serious issue and completely negates Neptune's (Terence) marketing of the 1Link (save on some power blocks, but lose multiple components.....NO). I normally take 8 to 10 day vacations, I was lucky that this was just a long weekend before the 4th. It is very interesting that there just happens to be a sale on WAV pumps right now. Maybe the number of aging pumps is hitting critical mass. Either that or folks have stopped buying them. I have to say that my WAVs have been fine to this point, but we should get more for the price point. Those of us that ran Tunze 6100s (or 6105s) for eons have expectations. Mine are probably still running in some tank somewhere in the universe..........

 

[Flippers4pups]

Reading all of this from the beginning is making my head spin! And it's just because of wave makers/powerheads! Wow.

 

[Water Dog]

It seems to be one of the big inherent risks of being so reliant on a fully dependent eco system from a single manufacturer. Although I do have a 2016 Apex as a controller, I feel more confident using it with my Vortechs, Tunze ATO and Fluval SP return pump. Not a fan of having all your eggs in one basket.

 

[acjobim]

It seems to be one of the big inherent risks of being so reliant on a fully dependent eco system from a single manufacturer. Although I do have a 2016 Apex as a controller, I feel more confident using it with my Vortechs, Tunze ATO and Fluval SP return pump. Not a fan of having all your eggs in one basket.

For sure. I know I was seduced by the integration. In my other hobbies (e.g., Home Theater, I have always been into separates).

I am going to remove my ATK and re-install my Tunze ATO tomorrow (or maybe run the ATK in standalone mode). I need to make a powerhead decision soon. My main return is a VarioS 8, my backup is a COR (which has only been wet (tested) for a day). I also have a Jebao DC 9000 that was used for a month. I may sell the COR and use the Jebao as my backup. I know they are not reliable, but as a backup, I need it to function while the VarioS is being repaired or a new one is being shipped my way. So it will be used for days at a time.

 

[roberthu526]

Spend half an hour reading through this thread helped me make up my mind not to take the WAV sale that is going on right now.

 

[danreefman]

Economy is slowing. Looks just like last time. Evrything goes for sale when no one is buying or they have to much stock. Everyone is getting scared selling tanks and moving right now.

 

[roberthu526]

The reason I asked whether your WAV was connected to 1Link or EB832 was to confirm a 'hypothesis'. Namely that when a WAV fails it appears to temporarily shut down other devices connected to the same 'source'. So if connected to 1Link a shorted pump shuts down the others connected to that 1Link; if connected to EB832 a shorted pump shuts down all devices connected to that EB832. I'd like to know from Neptune of that is in fact the case, because if so, it makes connecting WAV pumps to EB832 problematic. I suspect 1Link is thus the preferred mode of connection.

I wonder if Neptune changes the power connection to traditional plug, will this still happen?

 

[cccharliecc]

I have all my eggs in the Apex basket and I'm fine with it. I have the new Apex, but have backups of almost everything except a skimmer.....but that's not critical imo.

 

[ca1ore]

I wonder if Neptune changes the power connection to traditional plug, will this still happen?

Dunno. I know that when connected via 1link, a shorted WAV pump temporarily disables any other WAVs connected to the common power source. I have not confirmed for myself that the same is true for WAV connected to EB832 ....

 

[roberthu526]

Dunno. I know that when connected via 1link, a shorted WAV pump temporarily disables any other WAVs connected to the common power source. I have not confirmed for myself that the same is true for WAV connected to EB832 ....

This is very scary

 

[mitch91175]

Guys this issue isn’t new news. When a module fails the Apex does the same thing. The whole system goes offline. This has happened to me with a PM2 module and others as well. Definitely a design flaw that they aren’t really too keen on fixing from the looks of it.

 

[mitch91175]

I have all my eggs in the Apex basket and I'm fine with it. I have the new Apex, but have backups of almost everything except a skimmer.....but that's not critical imo.

If you are not available and do not have anyone available to troubleshoot when a Neptune System product connected to the Apex goes bad, no amount of backup is gonna help at all.

 

[mitch91175]

I’ve previously decided to skip the Trident and COR because of these issues.

Alkatronic is an excellent alternative for alkalinity monitoring. Is it perfect, no but what is. What is perfect is how they listen and support their product. You tend to develop a more personal relationship with them (using Facebook messenger)

 

[acjobim]

Guys this issue isn’t new news. When a module fails the Apex does the same thing. The whole system goes offline. This has happened to me with a PM2 module and others as well. Definitely a design flaw that they aren’t really too keen on fixing from the looks of it.

This has not been my experience. I have had a DOS, an ALD, and a PM1 fail. The Apex was never affected and I did not experience a complete system failure. The only modules that went offline are the modules that connected to the AquaBus via the failed module. The 1Link issue (that I am referring to) is different. The 1Link is still connected to the Apex. Anything plugged into the 1Link with a failed WAV plugged in does not respond to the Apex and is no longer controllable, and does not have power. Any module using the 1Link's AquaBus connection is stilled controllable by the Apex.